Insulated beverage holder

ABSTRACT

The present invention discloses an improved insulated beverage container holder formed from foam in the shape of a human hand holding a beverage container. The holder comprises a body having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand and a wrist and the perimeter wall of the wrist defining an access opening formed and arranged to accept insertion of a human hand into a chamber defined by the perimeter wall of the hand. The holder further comprises a removable cavity insert adapted to be disposed in the receptacle. The cavity insert is for standard 12 ounce cans and bottles. When the cavity insert is removed from the receptacle, it is sized to receive larger type containers, such as 24 ounce stadium cups. A removable wrist band allows the holder to be produced in different colors and to display schools/teams symbols.

This invention relates to thermal insulating devices for beverage containers to partially insulate the beverage container from the atmosphere. The insulating device may include the color scheme and/or symbol of an educational institution, a sports team and/or the car number of a race car driver. A removable wrist band assists in inventory control for the many different symbols, numbers and colors associated with this promotional product.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

For years, foam sleeves of various kinds have been used to insulate 12 ounce beverage cans/bottles. For example, such foam sleeves are sold under the brand name KOOZIE® by the Norwood Company. (See http://www.rcc-koozie.com). Such foam sleeves are in widespread use and are a well-accepted technique for providing insulation for canned and bottled beverages and are most commonly used to keep ambient heat from warming the contents of a 12 ounce beverage can or bottle.

When attending sports games, concerts, and other events in stadiums, arenas, etc., attendees often carry accessory items such as cushioned seats, binoculars, signs, and/or a cup holder. Bringing along these items allow fans to express team spirit. Further, many sports fans identify themselves closely with their favorite teams. It is well known that all true supporters of favorite and noteworthy causes or events would like to display their loyalty to these causes or events via an article that is imprinted with team colors, a symbol or number associated with these causes or events. Fans frequently wear shirts and hats to games and elsewhere to show support, loyalty and enthusiasm for their teams. Such team-related clothing includes team colors, various symbols imprinted with the team logo/insignia or a driver's car number.

Prior art beverage container holders have been disclosed with novelty features such as decorative designs, advertisements or logo's on the exterior surface of the beverage container holder. However, fans who want to show their fervent loyalty and enthusiasm for the teams also use signs, flags, or other articles displaying the team colors or logos. For example, human fist-shaped can holders are sold by FAN CAN HAND. (See http://www.fancanhand.com). A photo of this product is included in the Information Disclosure Statement. The product is in the shape of a fist surrounding a beverage container. A non-removable colored portion surrounds the wrist section of the Fan Can Hand insulator giving the product a two color design. A nation-wide supplier will need to carry a large inventory of the Fan Can Hand insulator in order to stock all the different colors and symbols for famous sports teams, educational institutions and/or race car drivers. Other designs for toys are disclosed in U.S. Design Pat. No. 489,772 owned by Marvel Enterprises for a fist of The Incredible Hulk®. A photo of the product shown in this design patent is included in the iformation Disclosure Statement.

Yet another limitation to conventional beverage insulators is not being able to accommodate different container sizes. Although conventional insulators generally succeed in insulating 12 ounce cans, the range of sizes and types of cups accommodated by such conventional insulators remains relatively limited. Conventional insulators may not be used effectively with other beverage container types, such as “stadium cups.”

The Fan Can Hand product is formed in the shape of a fist which could incite inappropriate behavior among over-beveraged fans. The present invention is not in the shape of a fist, nor does it show bulging veins. Instead the present invention resembles a hand inside a glove that is holding a beverage container. There are no minute details of the human hand in the present invention to visually incite rowdy behavior.

Further objectives and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a careful reading of a detailed description provided hereinbelow, with appropriate reference to accompanying drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention discloses an improved insulated beverage container holder formed from foam in the shape of a human hand holding a beverage container. The foam hand is not in the shape of a fist. The holder comprises a body having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand holding a beverage container and a wrist. The body can have a shape of a global hand holding a container. The perimeter wall of the wrist defines an access opening formed and arranged to accept insertion of a human hand into a chamber defined by the perimeter wall of the hand. The body further defines an insulating receptacle dimensioned to receive therein a container and the insert dimensioned to accommodate a smaller size container. The holder further comprises a removable cavity insert adapted to be disposed in the receptacle.

Another embodiment of a beverage container holder, according to the present invention comprises a removable wrist band surrounding the wrist. The color of the body may be different from the color of the removable wrist band. School or team symbols are imprinted on the removable wrist band. Any sports-type team symbol can be used to depict loyalty, or the invention may be used to fashion some type of nonverbal expression. This feature can range from pictures of movies, to friends or family, slogans, or any artistic, imprinted designs. Further, race car numbers can also be imprinted on the removable wrist band.

The color of the foam hand may be produced in a limited number of basic colors with no specific team logos or identifiers to minimize inventory to the supplier. For example, and not as a limitation, the basic colors might include blue, red, green, orange and black. Several basic colors will match the prominent color of specific professional and/or collegiate sports teams. Because many professional & collegiate colors are identical, i.e., L.A. Dodger blue & Duke University blue, St. Louis Cardinal Red & University of Georgia red, etc . . . , a supplier can take advantage by manufacturing these basic color units without risk of excess inventory for a specific team in a specific sport.

The removable wrist band reduces the amount of inventory necessary for a supplier selling to large numbers of sports teams and educational institutions. The color of the removable wrist band will match the secondary colors of specific sports teams and educational institutions. The removable wrist band could also carry licensed logos. A single band with a secondary color and/or logo will be packaged with one coordinating glove for retail purchase, however, the consumer then has the advantage of purchasing multiple coordinating wrist bands after the original purchase to utilize with the original glove as they see fit. This functionality alleviates the possible burden of purchasing a second glove unit that has the same basic color of the original purchase but has a different team/sport affiliation permanently attached and/or affixed. For example, a customer could purchase a foam glove in blue and a first removable wrist band for the St. Louis Blue's hockey team and a second removable wrist band for the St. Louis Ram's football team. The basic color for both the St. Louis Blue's hockey team and the St. Louis Ram's football team is blue. The secondary color for the St. Louis Blue's hockey team is white and therefore the removable wrist band for this hockey team would be white and the team logo may also be included on the wrist band. The secondary color for the St. Louis Ram's football team is gold and therefore the removable wrist band for this football team would be gold and the team logo may also be included on the wrist band. The wrist band may be several inches wide to provide an adequate surface to print a logo, symbol or number.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exploded view of the insulated beverage holder in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the insulated beverage holder, as taken generally along the line A-A of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 illustrates a top view of the insulated beverage holder.

FIG. 4 illustrates a side view of the insulated beverage holder.

It should be understood that the drawings are not necessarily to scale and that the embodiments are sometimes illustrated by graphic symbols, phantom lines, diagrammatic representations and fragmentary views. In certain instances, details which are not necessary for an understanding of the present invention or which render other details difficult to perceive may have been omitted. It should be understood, of course, that the invention is not necessarily limited to the particular embodiments illustrated herein. Like numbers utilized throughout the various Figures designate like or similar parts.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before describing the present invention, it will be understood that variations of the present invention may be applied in combination with toy-like beverage container holders, and it is not limited to the specific examples described herein.

Referring now to the drawings FIGS. 1-4, the insulating beverage holder of the present invention is generally referenced by the numeral 10. The insulating beverage holder 10 of the present invention is best shown in FIG. 1.

The insulating beverage holder 10 is formed by the foam hand body or structure 20 having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand section 21 and a wrist section 30, and is intended to hold a beverage can or bottle. The hand portion 21 of the hand body 20 holds the outer surface of a generally cylindrical cup 23 forming an insulating receptacle 22 dimensioned to receive therein a large cup, beverage container or can (not shown). The top portion of the cylinder or the cylindrical bore 22 is open and the bottom 24 is closed. The top portion 22 comprises a perimeter wall 25 which has a constant circumference the length thereof. In one embodiment, the outer surface of the cylindrical bore 22 comprises substantially identical diameters at their top and bottom ends.

Referring now to the drawing FIG. 2, there is a hollow space 60 made of an insulating material and formed inside the foam hand. The user simply inserts their entire hand into the hollow space 60 to hold the internal molded area 26 that insulates the beverage can or bottle. The height of the cylindrical cup 23, that is, the extent of the sleeve, as well as the tubular passage 22 is determined by the height of the containers normally to be associated therewith such that a significant external surface area of the container is enclosed by the cylindrical cup 23 and also taking into consideration the height of one's hand utilizing, that is, grasping, the cylindrical cup 23 in the chamber 60. The insulating material is preferably made of a lightweight, foamed material such as Styrofoam, polyethylene foamed plastic or other lightweight foamed rubber. Other lightweight, foamed material will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

Referring to the drawings FIGS. 1-4, a wrist extension 30 projects from the foam hand 20 and may be surrounded by a removable wrist band 40. The color of the foam hand 20 is typically a different from the color of the removable wrist band 40 to match the colors of sports teams and educational institutions and to reduce inventory for a nation-wide supplier. Other means for surrounding the wrist to show different color on the wrist band will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. This removable wrist band 40 may also be imprinted with a school or team symbol or logo 41.

In one embodiment, the foam hand 20 has a removable cavity insert 50 sized for smaller sized cans or cups, such as 12 ounce cans. The removable cavity insert 50 has a height H and a perimeter circumference dimensioned for insertion into the cylindrical bore 22, as best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2. In the preferred embodiment, the height H of the removable cavity insert 50 is at least a depth of the cylindrical bore 22. When the cavity insert 50 is removed from the foam hand 20, the cylindrical opening 22 is large enough to accommodate larger size containers, such as those for 24 ounce containers. The removable cavity insert 50 gives the user the option to hold a smaller sized containers (with the cavity insert in place) and larger containers (by removal of the cavity insert).

The removable wrist band 40 reduces the amount of inventory necessary for a nation-wide supplier that covers a large number of sports teams and educational institutions. Typically the body 20 will be produced and carried in inventory in a limited number of colors and the removable wrist band 40 will be produced and carried in inventory in a wide variety of colors. This makes it less costly for a nation-wide supplier to stock sufficient inventory for a wide variety of teams. The removable wrist band may also be imprinted with a logo, number, slogan or other type of symbol, depending on which products, teams, or drivers are popular.

Thus, there has been shown and described several embodiments of a novel invention. As is evident from the foregoing description, certain aspects of the present invention are not limited by the particular details of the examples illustrated herein, and it is therefore contemplated that other modifications and applications, or equivalents thereof, will occur to those skilled in the art. The terms “having” and “including” and similar terms as used in the foregoing specification are used in the sense of “optional” or “may include” and not as “required”. Many changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications of the present construction will, however, become apparent to those skilled in the art after considering the specification and the accompanying drawings. All such changes, modifications, variations and other uses and applications which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention are deemed to be covered by the invention which is limited only by the claims which follow. 

1. An insulated beverage holder generally in the shape of a hand, comprising: a body having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand section and a wrist section, the hand section defining an insulating receptacle dimensioned to receive therein a container, the opening having a closed bottom; a removable wrist band surrounding the wrist section; and a chamber formed in the band section having an access opening formed and arranged to accept insertion of a human hand located in the wrist section, the chamber being closed at a point distal from the access opening.
 2. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a removable cavity insert adapted to be disposed in the receptacle, the insert dimensioned to accommodate a smaller size container.
 3. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein the color of the body is different from the color of the removable wrist band.
 4. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein a symbol is imprinted on the removable wrist band.
 5. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein number is imprinted on the removable wrist band.
 6. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein the body is formed from foam.
 7. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein the body is formed from resilient material.
 8. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein the insulating receptacle has an outer peripheral surface inside the chamber so that the user securely holds the outer peripheral surface.
 9. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1, wherein the perimeter wall is in the shape of a gloved hand holding a container.
 10. An insulated beverage holder generally in the shape of a hand, comprising: a body having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand and a wrist; the body further defining an insulating receptacle dimensioned to receive therein a container, the opening having a closed bottom; a removable cavity insert adapted to be disposed in the receptacle, the insert dimensioned to accommodate a smaller size container; and the perimeter wall of the wrist defining an access opening formed and arranged to accept insertion of a human hand into a chamber defined by the perimeter wall of the hand.
 11. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 1 further comprising a removable wrist band surrounding the wrist.
 12. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein the color of the body is different from the color of the removable wrist band.
 13. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein a symbol is imprinted on the removable wrist band.
 14. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein number is imprinted on the removable wrist band.
 15. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein the body is formed from foam.
 16. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein the body is formed from resilient material
 17. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein the insulating receptacle has an outer peripheral surface inside the chamber so that the user securely holds the outer peripheral surface.
 18. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 10, wherein the perimeter wall is in the shape of a gloved hand holding a container.
 19. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand, comprising: a body having a perimeter wall generally in the shape of a hand and wrist; the body further defining an insulating receptacle dimensioned to receive therein a container, the opening having a closed bottom; means for surrounding the wrist with a color different from the original color of the wrist; and a chamber having an access opening formed and arranged to accept insertion of a human hand in the body.
 20. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19 further comprising means for accommodating a smaller size container, adapted to be disposed inside the opening.
 21. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein a symbol is imprinted on the means for surrounding the wrist.
 22. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein number is imprinted on the means for surrounding the wrist.
 23. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein the body is formed from foam.
 24. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein the body is formed from resilient material.
 25. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein the insulating receptacle has an outer peripheral surface inside the chamber so that the user securely holds the outer peripheral surface.
 26. An insulated beverage holder in the shape of a hand as set forth in claim 19, wherein the perimeter wall is in the shape of a gloved hand holding a container. 